The Reid Report team is discussing these top news stories now:
To Strike at Kochs, Democrats Revive Tactic That Hurt Romney – “After months of wincing in the face of negative ads funded by the industrialists David and Charles Koch, Democrats believe they have finally found a way to fight back: attacking the brothers’ sprawling business conglomerate as callous and indifferent to the lives of ordinary people while pursuing profit and power.” [The New York Times]
Spring breakers riot at ‘Deltopia’ party in California – “An annual Spring Break party near the University of California Santa Barbara turned into a sprawling riot after a university cop was smashed in the face with a backpack full of liquor bottles[.]” [New York Daily News]
Senate is expected to pass unemployment bill, but a difficult path awaits in House – “The Senate is expected to vote Monday to pass a bipartisan bill that would restore long-term unemployment benefits that were allowed to expire in December. So all the attention now turns to the House, where early indicators say the deal may be dead on arrival.” [The Washington Post]
Pro-Russian activists declare east Ukraine independent– “The seizure of government buildings in East Ukraine by pro-Russian separatists is being orchestrated by Moscow to create an excuse for military invasion like Crimea, Ukraine’s prime minister said Monday.” [USA Today]
‘Miracles Do Happen’: Malaysia Won’t Rule Out MH370 Survivors – “Malaysia’s transport minister called possible pings that might be linked to missing Flight MH370 the ‘most promising lead we have had’ on Monday and said he was unable to rule out that some of its passengers remained alive.” [NBCNews.com]
Lawmakers, Officials Debate Letting Soldiers Carry Guns on Base – “Lawmakers and military officials weighed in on Sunday morning on the wisdom of allowing soldiers to carry private weapons on bases, after the deadly shooting at Fort Hood last week prompted a debate about base security.” [Time.com]
Jeb Bush: Some illegal immigration ‘act of love’ – “On immigration, he said that those who come into the country illegally generally do so because they had no other means to provide for their family, and what they did is ‘not a felony.’” [POLITICO]
Afghan Elections Point to Runoff, Waning Karzai Influence– “Former World Bank executive Ashraf Ghani and opposition leader Abdullah Abdullah appeared to be the two front-runners in Afghanistan’s presidential election, sidelining a candidate viewed as President Hamid Karzai’s favorite, according to partial results tallied by news organizations and one candidate.” [The Wall Street Journal]
Alexis Stodghill